


witch's impasse

by footprintpath



Category: Code Geass
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-16
Updated: 2017-05-16
Packaged: 2018-11-01 10:14:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10919748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/footprintpath/pseuds/footprintpath
Summary: Lelouch laments over his failed attempt at rescuing Nunnally from her position as the viceroy of Area 11. Luckily for him, C.C. is there to help him keep it together.





	witch's impasse

**Author's Note:**

> this is the first fic ive uploaded anywhere since like 2010 so go easy on me

“Ah, finally, some peace and quiet.” C.C. whined.

Lelouch sat contemplatively at his desk, folded hands resting at his chin, gazing out of the window in front of him at nothing in particular. It was a serene night, much like any other; albeit perhaps a little quieter than usual -- what with the absence of Sayoko and Nunnally. It was moreso their presence that was lacking, however, as the two of them were never particularly noisy. 

Through his peripheral vision, Lelouch could see C.C. drape herself lazily over his unmade bed as per the usual, though he paid it little mind. He was too absorbed in thought. Consumed with the details of what had occurred just hours prior. It was more than a few moments before the silence was cut harshly by the sardonic drone of C.C.’s voice.

“Thinking hard?” the words came out slightly muffled through the makeshift cocoon of sheets she’d bunched up around herself. “You’ve been staring for quite a while now, I’m beginning to wonder if you’re even still awake.”

“Shut up.” Lelouch tossed caustically in response, barely seeming to have processed what he’d heard. C.C. sat up, her face adorned with a playful grin.

“Oh, so you _are_ awake.”

“I said shut up, witch.” Lelouch pressed his eyes shut in irritance. He wasn’t in the mood to hear C.C.’s usual quips. His attempt at retrieving Nunnally from her newly acquired position as viceroy had resulted in failure. It had only been a few hours since his return, but returning to Ashford Academy after such endeavors always made them feel like a distant memory. He couldn’t stop his mind from replaying the scene as his looming regret hung over him. _What went wrong,_ he pondered to himself. _What could I have done differently?_

“Hmph.” C.C. flopped dramatically back onto the bed, any trace of a smile gone from her expression. “It was inevitable, you know. This failure. Nunnally’s morals are too upstanding for her to be willing to cooperate with Zero.”

“Even so,” Lelouch unclasped his hands and leaned back in his chair, “I won’t have that man besmirch her name. This is all a formality, I’m positive that she isn’t being taken seriously as viceroy.”

“Didn’t she say that she volunteered herself for the position?” C.C. inquired, “Despite being demure in nature, Nunnally is certainly steadfast in her decisions. I find it hard to believe that she would let herself be walked over by her advisors.”

“Yes, but still-” Lelouch clenched his fists -- he couldn’t get the image of Nunnally’s face out of his mind. Her face when she heard Suzaku call out to her had been one of relief, contrary to the stern and somewhat nervous gaze she’d affixed on him... 

No, that’s not right. That gaze had been towards Zero, the leader of the Black Knights. That gaze was from a viceroy to a terrorist, not a sister to her brother.

“Are you afraid to use your geass on her?” Having rolled onto her stomach and with legs kicking whimsically in the air, C.C. teased Lelouch with questions she needn’t ask. She knew Lelouch inside and out by now, after all. Not because they were particularly close, or because he was particularly easy to read; it was more like they had developed a deep bond, one that went beyond description. A bond in which you could sense the other’s thoughts or actions simply through an occasional glance in their direction. It was as if they were living each other’s lives in addition to their own, vicariously, through merely observing the other.

“Don’t be ridiculous. You know I can’t do that.”

“Oh? And why not? It seems like the most simple solution, doesn’t it?” Patronizing as ever. Lelouch lurched forward and cast her a vicious look of pure vitriol, to which she seemed to back down somewhat.

It’s not as if Lelouch wasn’t one to brood, he most certainly was. He just had a tendency to rationalize as much as possible, coming up with a reason by which to turn a failure into a success. He was an optimist, more or less. A glass half full sort of person.

“This is probably the best outcome for both parties, in retrospect. I can’t think of a place safer for Nunnally than with Suzaku. I also don’t want a reason to fear her being taken again.” Lelouch let out a breathy sigh. He was mostly reassuring himself under the guise of responding to C.C.’s pressing. Though it didn’t go unnoticed by her, she opted to ignore it.

“You mean what happened at the Black Rebellion?” now fully immersed in the bedding, C.C. peered at Lelouch through only slightly open eyes.

“Yes. I can’t risk losing the trust of the Black Knights for a second time, not after they’ve had to forgive me once,” He gently crossed a leg up over his knee to support his forearms as he hunched over, “Besides, my fight is no longer just about Nunnally.”

“My, has the demon opened his heart to those other than his sister?” the words bounced back to Lelouch through playful decorum. It was just like C.C. to tease him over a slight change in heart. He merely scoffed, however, seemingly unscathed by her pseudo-insult.

“You’re one to talk, C.C.” 

“Am I?” She turned over and tilted her head toward the ceiling, languid eyes glazed over in introspection, “Perhaps you’re right. Geass is a power that isolates its user. Even your allies can’t fully be trusted.” As she spoke, Lelouch’s eyes traced the strands of her long, tousled green hair that lay strewn about her. C.C.’s words cut deeper than she had likely intended. 

It was all too true, after all. Geass had isolated him further than he ever could have hoped to on his own. That hardly bothered him, however. He knew long before acquiring the power of geass that taking down Britannia would require a great deal of isolation on his part. And yet, something about what C.C. said upset him more than it should have. It was as if every time he felt closer to unraveling her esoteric thought process, she said something that had him taken aback. He knew what she would say next, he could easily predict how she might react to something, but he still couldn’t read into her stifled sense of self. Despite knowing exactly what she was thinking, her lack of any harbored humanity made it near impossible to tell what she was _feeling._

“When are you going to put your trust in me, C.C.?” Lelouch’s voice came out more sincere than he had anticipated, and C.C. noticed. She turned back to face him, eyes wide and more awake now than she had been since they’d arrived back at the school.

“What do you mean? We’re allies, of course I trust you, Lelouch.”

“That isn’t what I meant,” Lelouch righted himself by uncrossing his legs and turned to face her more directly. Straightening his posture, he glared at her with a look of hegemony, similar to the look she imagined he sported under his mask as Zero. A look that demanded cooperation, but one that’s impact was entirely lost on her. “When are you going to tell me the details of your contract?”

“Oh.” C.C.’s gaze returned to the ceiling as her expression relaxed once more, “That’s what you want to know? That has nothing to do with trust, Lelouch.” She let out a sigh of exasperation, “I’ll tell you the details when the time comes. Doing so now is unnecessary.” Her response allowed Lelouch to relax somewhat, his posture and expression softening. It wasn’t the answer he had been hoping for, but was enough to quell his inquiries for the time being. A wry smile crept upon the corners of his mouth as his gaze met hers.

“I see. That’s just like you, C.C.” His eyes were met with a smile of her own.

“You seem to know me better than I thought you did, Lelouch.” 

For a while, the two of them said nothing. They simply stared knowingly at each other, their gazes locked long past the point of intimacy. The two of them didn’t often share moments such as these, however, the connection between them always lingered. 

“You may be the only ally I can trust.” Lelouch replied mirthfully as he rose from his seat and approached his bed where C.C. lie. She sat up, clearly intending to relinquish the bed to it’s owner, but to her surprise, Lelouch waved his hand in dismissal.

“There’s no need to get up.”

“Are you going to be a gentleman and sleep on the floor? I didn’t know you were so-” her sarcastic remark was cut short when Lelouch lifted the covers to settle in beside her. “L-Lelouch?”

“Just stay like this for now,” He peeled his shoes off the heels of his feet, allowing them to drop to the floor as he sidled under the multitude of blankets C.C. had wrapped herself in. “Just until the morning.” 

As soon as he got comfortable, Lelouch wrapped his arms around C.C. She could feel heat rising in her cheeks, unsure of how to react as she felt Lelouch’s hand cradle the back of her head. _What is this? He wants to share the bed with me? What is he playing at?_

Tentatively, she shifted her hands up to Lelouch’s chest, hesitating slightly before relinquishing herself to the tug of his arms around her. She folded gently into the warmth of his torso, heartbeat racing. The soft caress of Lelouch’s breathing enveloped her, the breath of each exhale ghosting the top of her head. She felt as though she could melt into him.

“Lelouch…” her voice a barely audible whisper.

“Goodnight, C.C.” Lelouch spoke with a slight trepidation in his voice, trepidation that he had clearly been trying to suppress until now. All of the burdens of Zero and the Black Knights and Britannia came seeping through his words the moment he dropped his filter. C.C. smiled.

_Oh, I see. So that’s what you were thinking._

“Goodnight, Lelouch.”

It would be fine to stay like this for now.


End file.
